


Diverging Paths Converge

by csichick_2



Category: Eureka, Stargate Atlantis
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-08-23
Updated: 2015-08-23
Packaged: 2018-04-16 19:29:20
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 1,725
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/4637478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/csichick_2/pseuds/csichick_2
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Laura Cadman and Tess Fontana find out that they're twin sisters that were separated at birth. Their separate lives intertwine when Tess also joins the Atlantis expedition.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Each scene will be a chapter, so they'll be of varying length.

Laura Cadman found out she was adopted when she was sixteen. Through a wonderful series of bad decisions, she ended up running away from home and now had sheepishly returned, three months pregnant.

Most of the time her father simply tries to pretend none of this is happening. Her mother, however, has been openly hostile. “Of course you got pregnant young,” she snaps at her. “That's what your real mother did too.”

The revelation hits Laura like a slap on the face. She's not sure which hurts more. That her parents kept this from her or that her mother is choosing to blame Laura's poor decisions solely on genetics, rather than consider that the teenage rebellion may have in part been due to the overprotective manner in which Laura, as an only child, was raised.


	2. Chapter 2

Contessa Fontana has always known she was adopted. Her parents made no secret of the fact, holding it over her head when she misbehaved, reminding her that without them, she would be “living with that crack whore in a gutter somewhere.” She knows their hearts were in the right place and that they do love her, but the older she got, the more she resented them for their haughty attitude over the whole thing.


	3. Chapter 3

Giving her son up for adoption was the hardest decision Laura had made so far in her young life, but she knew it realistically was her only option. She pondered getting an abortion the day she found out she was pregnant, before she even returned home, but she couldn't go through with it. And since her parents constantly reminded her that they would not help her in any way aside from letting her live in their house until she finished high school, she knew there was no way she could raise him herself.

She ended up attending college on an ROTC scholarship – not her original life plan, but she figured she'd get her degree, put in her two years in the Marines, and then move on with her life.

That plan, like the ones before it, ended up being a far cry from the direction her life actually took.


	4. Chapter 4

When Contessa reached high school, she started insisting everyone call her Tess, much to her parents' dismay. She found her name old-fashioned and stuffy and hated it – the fact her parents found her nickname cheap and trashy was just icing on the cake as far as she was concerned.

It was around that time that she also started trying to learn about her biological parents – something else that angered her parents. They claimed to not know anything, but she knew they were lying. She wasn't sure what they were hiding, but she knew she'd find out eventually.

When it came time for college, she knew her parents wanted her nearby, and New England had no shortage of excellent schools, but she needed to get away. Her parents were obviously less than thrilled by her desires, but were somewhat placated when the acceptance letter from Cambridge University arrived. Tess was absolutely gleeful as it would put an entire ocean between herself and the life she was trying to leave behind.

Tess was lucky to get Allison as a roommate – they became fast friends and Tess knew she was someone that would always be in her life. Allison also was willing to help her in her quest to find her birth parents. It would be another several years before they found anything, but Tess knows it would have taken much longer without Allie's help.

Tess is halfway through her second PhD when she finds out she has an identical twin sister. She uses a school break to travel to Michigan, figuring her sister's adoptive parents can tell her where to find her sister. What she doesn't expect is the attitude of Maureen Cadman.

“You're not Laura,” she snaps, glaring at Tess.

“My name is Tess Fontana. Laura and I are sisters, but we were adopted by different families.”

“We don't give her money. We're not about to give you any either. Go find someone else to con.”

Tess narrows her eyes. “I grew up in a house more than twice the size of this one, so I don't need money from anyone. I just want to get to know my sister.”

Maureen gives Tess a look that clearly says she's not impressed. “She joined the military. We don't keep track of where she is.”

“But she's your daughter,” Tess says, stunned. She may have distanced herself from her parents to a degree, but she would never lose contact with them completely.

“She's a fuck up that took the only option left available to her. Now why don't you go back to ruining your own life – it seems to run in the family,” Maureen snaps at her.

Tess glares at her. “I'm sorry I wasted my time flying here from Cambridge to deal with your attitude,” she says snottily, before turning and leaving. Laura's parents may be a dead end, but she still knows something about her sister she didn't know before.

With Allison's help, she's able to find her sister is a Lieutenant in the Marine Corps, but then the trail goes cold. Whatever Laura is doing, it's classified. Highly classified.


	5. Chapter 5

Laura was highly skeptical when she was asked to sign a non-disclosure agreement for a top-secret assignment, but not a day goes by where she doesn't find herself glad she did. Not only is traveling through the Stargate a thrill, she's met the best friend she ever had. Evan doesn't treat her any differently because she's a woman – something that still happens far too often in the military – and the fact that there are parts of her past she refuses to talk about doesn't bother him. She knows she can trust him, knows he won't look at her any differently, but she's not ready to discuss her mistakes. Even if without them, she probably wouldn't be here.

If she's honest with herself, Laura knows she wouldn't mind it if she and Evan were more than friends, but she also knows why it wouldn't work. They're both officers and in different branches of the military, so in normal circumstances, fraternization regulations wouldn't be an issue, but the Stargate Program is far from normal. They're not on the same Gate Team, but sometimes shit happens off world and one team has to rescue another. Usually they pull out the big guns of SG-1 for a rescue – well, when they're not the ones being rescued – but if the day comes where one of them has to rescue the other, well that's the reason frat regs exist in the first place. Laura would much rather have Evan as just a friend then not at all.


	6. Chapter 6

Laura nervously waits outside General Hammond's office. She doesn't think she did anything wrong, well besides telling that slimeball engineer that the next time he tries to grab her ass she'll break his hand, but she still feels like the little kid being called to the principal's office for a scolding.

“Have a seat, Lieutenant,” Hammond says when she enters his office.

“If this is about that engineer, Sir,” she starts as she sits down.

“It's not, and I have a feeling I don't want to know,” he says cutting her off.

“Then why am I here, Sir?” Laura's even more nervous then she was before, which she didn't think was possible.

“There's been a security breach with personnel files, except yours was the only one that was accessed.”

“What does this mean, Sir?”

“I was hoping you could tell me. Does the name Contessa Fontana mean anything to you?”

“No, Sir. Is she the one that accessed my file?”

“Only the unclassified parts, but not for lack of trying on her part.” Hammond slides a picture across the desk. “I think you'll see why I thought you might know her.”

Laura stares at the picture in shock. Aside from a slightly different hairstyle, she could have been looking at a photograph of herself. “I'm adopted, Sir. I don't know anything about my biological family, but if I had to guess, I'd say we're related somehow.”

“I know this must be a lot to process, Lieutenant. We can tell you how to find her, if you want to ask her what she's up to. However, if you would rather not, we don't really have a choice but to arrest her.”

“I'd like to meet with her first, Sir. If she's up to no good, I'll arrest her myself.”

“Talk to Walter on the way out, he'll make the arrangements.”

“Yes, Sir,” Laura says, rising and then saluting.

“And Lieutenant, if this presumed long-lost relative of yours was simply trying to find you so she could contact you, tell her to stop sticking her nose where it doesn't belong before she gets into trouble.”


	7. Chapter 7

The rest of the day passes by in a fog for Laura. Instead of going home after she changes back into her civvies, she just sits there in the locker room, staring at her hands. That's how Evan finds her.

“How long have you been sitting here, Laura?” he asks, crouching in front of her and taking her hands in his.

Laura finds herself grounded by his touch. “I have no idea,” she says, honestly. “It's just been one of those days.”

“Want to talk about it?”

“Not here,” Laura replies.

“Give me a couple minutes to get changed and we can go back to my place. Plenty of beer in the fridge.”

“Won't people talk?” Laura doesn't know why she even asked the question. She and Evan hang out all the time, so it's not people don't already know they're friends.

“You mean any more than they already do?” Evan asks as he peels off his shirt.

“What are they saying?” Laura asks, forcing herself to look away from Evan before he catches her staring.

“The same things they say about O'Neill and Carter. Or O'Neill and Jackson – depending on the day and person.”

“Is that supposed to reassure me?”

Evan shrugs. “Unless someone gets busted fucking on base, I don't think anyone much cares. Us leaving together isn't going to cause any problems.”

“If you're sure, I could use that beer. Or ten.”

“Well then what are we waiting for?” Evan asks.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Rest of story will be posted ASAP in a few weeks as per discussion with the mods.


End file.
